Life in the Heart of Death
by Arctiquaza
Summary: What happens after you die? Research has shown that sometimes, you become a Pokemon. But, what if you remembered what used to be? And if you could prove your identity, could you still become a trainer? Rated T to be safe, contains death and injuries.
1. A New Ending

_Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump._

His heart beat loudly in his chest as he ran. He was ten. Only ten. He did not know where he would run to, or where he would go, but anywhere was better than here. He was finally old enough, he could register as a trainer maybe, find some sort of home, as soon as he got away from he-

_Thump._

He tripped over a tree root. He frantically felt for some sort of handhold, but then he felt his head hit something hard.

And the world as he knew it faded into the dark.

* * *

He felt himself drifting in his sleep. The wind brushed against him. He couldn't see, hear, he could barely think. He felt something warm, and in the chill of the wind, he decided to take refuge. He felt himself fade from his brief moment of consciousness.

* * *

He slowly opened his eyes. Seeing the sun high in the sky, looking to be almost noon, he jerked up, panicking, and reached beside him to find... Nothing. Wait, how could he see the sun from inside a room?

As his mind cleared, he looked at his surroundings. Large trees towered like redwoods, water trickled off their leaves, flooding into a giant pool beside him. He felt the bark of a tree trunk scrape against him as he sat up. It was somehow even more terrifying in the day than in the night.

Why... was he here? In the midst of these towering trees, fluttering with life as Pokemon went about. The sun was warm and comforting, perhaps it wouldn't hurt to take another nap...

A moment of terror grasped his heart as he shot up. _No!_ His dad was probably looking for him, why did he come out here, he had to go back. He quickly turned to stand up but froze immediately.

There was a dead body laying beside him.

_His_ dead body.


	2. Realization

His mind blanked, yet a million thoughts were running through his head. He desperately tried to grab onto something, something to make sense of all this. He stared at the body in front of him. He moved forward almost in a trance.

Yep, that was him. Currently bleeding out from the head. His body was laying against a large rock, with a rounded tip now covered in blood. He reached out slowly. This couldn't be real. I mean, he was still here, right?

He touched the body.

Immediately he jerked back. That was not his hand. He stared at it, holding it out in front of him. No fingers, just a... vaguely teardrop-shaped nub. It was black, and looked kind of solid, yet a little see-through. He remembered the puddle of water, and went over. He noticed he wasn't really walking, but more... gliding. He still felt like he was going through the actions of walking, but he had no legs.

He drifted over to the water, peering in.

He had a wooden, mask like face, that looked like a stump. Two branches spread out from the sides like horns. Holes were carved out in a way that made him look surprised, and gleaming red eyes shone through them. His body was made of some sort of black, condensed mist.

After a moment, he recognized the image before him.

A Phantump. He was a Phantump.

He should have been more surprised, but he had suspected it all along, he had pushed away the thought, but now he was here, the evidence before him. He felt sort of... numb. Mentally.

Guess he would never get to be a trainer after all.

But wait... wasn't he still the same person? He remembered everything, well... almost. Some things were fuzzy. But he was still him, just... in a different form. Right?

He drifted over to his body, and sat, looking into his own blank eyes. A tear slowly made its way down his face. He had been trying to keep it in, the terror, the dread, the uncertainty. Another tear soon followed.

Soon he was full on sobbing. He was nothing now. Doomed to wander these woods until some day being captured and doing who knows what. He could end up in a PC, or even... he shivered... the daycare. He wasn't anyone anymore.

* * *

After crying for what seemed to be forever, he slowly stopped, and let out a long sigh. Sometimes crying does help.

Maybe he could still chase his dreams, I mean, his identification was right here! He unzipped his backpack, pulling out a Pokédex. He wasn't registered as a trainer, but everyone needed a Pokédex ID lately. His parents gave him one in case he was in some sort of accident, so they could identify him. He opened it up, looking at his picture and info. Jack. That was him. Had he almost forgotten his own name? He put the Dex back into the bag. The bag could be useful too. He slipped it off the shoulders of what used to be, and shakily began to drag it. It was surprisingly heavy.

As he began to temporarily come to peace with his situation, he heard footsteps.

"Hello?" A female voice cried. He froze in fear. He drifted back slightly, looking where the sound came from.

"Are you alright? I heard crying, it's okay. You can come out. I'm Nurse Joy." He let out a shaky sigh of relief as she identified herself. He almost spoke, but remembered his situation. Would she think he murdered the body?

He didn't have time to do anything before she stepped into view, holding a flashlight and brushing away some branches. "Hell... oh?" She looked at him, then the body, then the bag. She paused, trying to make sense of the scene. "Are... you the one who was crying?"

He hesitated, but nodded.

She pulled out a Pokédex and aimed it at him. _"Phantump, the Stump Pokemon."_ It said._ "According to old tales, these Pokémon are stumps possessed by the spirits of children who died while lost in the forest."_

She looked at the body, the blood, and the woods around her. Realization set in. "Oh... oh I am so sorry." She sank down to a squat to look at me at eye level. She silently opened her arms.

He hesitated, then slowly drifted over. She was so warm... he nestled into her arms, sighing as she hugged him gently. She began to stand up, and walk. He jerked away.

"What is it?" She looked at him, confused. He drifted down and grabbed the top of his bag, pulling hard and wobbling in the air as he returned to her. She silently helped him lift the bag up, strung it over her shoulder, and began to walk to the Pokemon Center, Jack cradled in her arms.


	3. Recovery

He stirred slightly. His arms moved easily along a silky surface, and it shifted when he adjusted his position. He sat up, looking around.

There was a pillow under him, and a small piece of cloth lay nearby. He looked to be on some sort of shelf, high up. He glanced down to find many other shelves reaching down to the floor. Most of the shelves had small stands holding a variety of different pokeballs. His bag sat on a nearby shelf.

Nurse Joy walked in and collected a few pokeballs, then saw him. "Oh, hey buddy. I'm just going to take these guys for their check-ups, and I'll be right back with some food!" And with that she left.

He sat back down to wait. He hadn't really fully absorbed the situation. I mean, he had always kind of wanted to be a Pokemon, but not like this. The fact that he had adjusted so easily honestly frightened him. And the fact that he couldn't remember some things he was very sure he should, like how he had forgotten his name.

* * *

Nurse Joy opened the door, turning the lights back on. "Sorry about that!" had they been off? He hadn't noticed. He stored away his thoughts and looked at her.

"...Feeling better?" She bent down a little to get on eye level with his shelf. "I got some stuff for you, I believe Ghost types don't actually need to eat, but it should help you get back some energy." and with that she placed some berries and water on the shelf. "Come outside whenever you're ready, I'll leave the door open. I'll be just outside the hall."

He looked at the various berries. There was a Sitrus, an Oran, and a Leppa. He picked up the Leppa, and brought it to where his mouth would be, but stopped when it bonked against the wood. He stopped for a second, his mind blanking. Then, the Leppa berry fell through his hand. It didn't go out the other side. He suddenly tasted it, and closed his eyes at the amazing bitter taste. Wait, what exactly just happened? He squinted into the air, trying to find an answer. Maybe that's just how he ate.

He felt more energized, and ready for the first day in this strange new life. Forgetting an the rest of his food, he hovered to the floor. He was about to leave, but he suddenly remembered his bag. It was too heavy to lug around, but he supposed he could bring something from it.

He spotted a keychain on one of the zippers of the bag. The sun coming through the window glinted off the pieces of metal, painted and arranged to look like a stained glass artwork of a pokeball. It was the only thing he felt he fully owned, he had found it while taking out the trash, half buried in the dirt. Nobody else really knew about it. As he looked at it, he got an idea. He swiftly detached it from the bag, and slid it onto one of his branches. It dangled there, like a Christmas ornament. It was surprisingly light.

With new confidence, he went out the door.

* * *

Nurse Joy was at the counter, talking to someone he could barely see from where he was.

"Alright, your Purrloin is all better, but I'd suggest a change in their diet. You've been coming in more often lately, so I'm going to be blunt. You need to feed them some freaking meat."

He peeked up over the counter to see them better. The man seemed like he was about to say something, but thought better of it and went quiet. Then they spotted him. "Oh, a Phantump! Are they one of the ones up for adoption?"

"No. He's still technically wild. We found him... Injured in the woods."

"Oh? He looks pretty healthy now. Are you looking for someone to take care of him?" He saw them slowly reach their hand into a pocket.

"No, not really..." Nurse Joy glanced between the man and Jack. She placed her arm between them. "No catching Pokemon in the Center." She said. The man hesitated, and then took their hand out of their pocket.

Jack went to go back into the hall. He heard one last thing before he left. "...So where would I go to buy some meat?"

* * *

He went back into the room. The curtains were open now, letting sunlight filter in. He sat down in the warm beams, and stared out the window. His head began to lean to the left. Trying to straighten it, he found there was some sort of weight there. Suddenly a Fletching jumped off of his head and in front of him. Jack backed away, and paused before talking. "...hi?"

The small bird pokemon nodded in greeting, and hopped a little, eyes smiling.

"...Can you understand me?"

The bird nodded again, but made no noise. Almost tacking him, as they were almost the same size, the Fletching fluttered back onto his head.

Nurse Joy quietly opened the door. "Oh hey! Looks like you found Tulum! I was worried she'd be lonely."

The nurse sat down beside him. "Anyways, sorry about that person. They're probably from Enotuxt, people seem to like them, but honestly some of their members are terrible at taking care of their Pokemon."

They sat in silence for a while, before she spoke again. "You know, they might have caught you. It's a pretty dangerous world for a Pokemon if you don't want to get caught. Actually, this brings me to my next thing. Do you want to get caught? I mean, you can't stay here forever, and I've never really been in this situation before, like I know about the Dex entries, but I thought they were just myths, I've never actually seen this happen-" She continued rambling on nervously while he thought.

What did he want to do? Maybe he could just be a pet? That would be a relaxing life, but he didn't think he'd really like it. There was another thing... Probably impossible, but it was worth a shot, there's a first time for everything...

He took a deep breath. "I want to be a trainer."

He felt Tulum go still on his head.

Nurse Joy looked at him. "Ah, communication is going to be a bit of a problem... I hadn't really considered, since you hadn't talked at all yet... Maybe you could write it down?" She fetched a pencil and paper and set them down.

He picked up the pencil, but with no fingers, he couldn't really hold it properly. He tried to write, but it just ended up looking like chicken scratch. He closed his eyes, trying not to make his frustration visible.

Nurse Joy paused, trying to think of something else. "Well... I have something that might work... Hold on, I'll be right back!" And with that she rushed out of the room.

* * *

She returned shortly, holding a large disk. "It's a bit of a stretch, but it might work." She set down the disk in front of him.

He looked at the disk, fishing for memories. Oh, that's a TM! He remembered one that was on his mom's desk, one for Energy Ball. He had won it as a top prize in a talent show, and gave it to his mom.

He reached out and touched the disk. Immediately energy flooded into him like a river, colliding with something in him that he didn't even notice was there. Warmth spread across him as he absorbed the information, and as it faded, he seemed to hold himself a little higher, and he became acutely aware of a large spot of energy in him.

"Woah... Was that always there..?" He pondered.

"What in the actual..." An unfamiliar voice said. He immediately whirled around to see Tulum had jumped off of his head, staring at him and squinting her eyes.

"Was that her..?"

"Yeah it was me, you twig. Now how in the ever living Arceus are you talking to me."

He shied back a bit at the words. "I'm sorry but I'm confused? Sorry if it's just what I thought but can't Pokemon talk to each other?"

"Yeah, of course they can, but I literally can't speak."

Nurse Joy seemed to sense the confusion between them, and jumped in. "That was a TM for Psychic, and well, I guess it worked!"

He stared at Joy for a second, going over all that in his head.

"Shut up." Tulum fluffed up her neck slightly.

"Oh, sorry." He apologized. Man, he was really going to have to find a way to control this, or all his thoughts were public property. Looking back at Tulum, he squinted. He couldn't see anything. But he could almost feel a... string between them. It was connected to the place where he felt the energy. He moved away a foot, and felt the cord pull taut. Maybe...

Concentrating hard, he tried to bring the energy connecting to the cord to separate. After a minute, it did so, and the cord faded. A success! He couldn't hear anything else Tulum was saying. Now, how did he make connections? He took the energy, not really using it, but more guiding it, and drew it through him, and up his arm. This part was a bit harder. He guided it out into open air, and looked at Nurse Joy. He could see a faint energy inside her. He gradually moved it, like a confused earthworm, to connect to her.

"I wonder how he's doing, if this really worked the-"

He looked her straight in the eyes, his new discoveries giving him confidence, and the cord slowly sapping his limited energy.

"I want to become a trainer."

* * *

**Woah, that was a long chapter! Probably one of the longest ones I've posted here! Anyways, hi! I'm the author. I've been enjoying writing this so far! It's been awhile since I've written anything for fun, and I wanted to get back into this site. I can't promise frequent updates, but I think I've been doing pretty good so far! Feel free to ask questions, or leave suggestions. Or just speculate on what's going to happen.  
**

**I've drawn Jack with his new little accessory here! **ibb. co/ kK3RgkJ


	4. Teontall

"...What?"

"I said I want to be a trainer." His mind was made up. This is the only path he could think of right now, and there was no going back.

"I... uhhhh..." Nurse Joy was visibly conflicted on what to do. She heard a sigh and looked up to see Jack, who had hope in his eyes, but it was quickly fading as he awaited her answer. Her heart couldn't take it, he had already been through so much, why not let him have this.

"I... Suppose that'd be something to talk to the Professor about."

He smiled inwardly. Maybe it wasn't over yet. Even though the chances were slim, he was willing to take the risk.

A bell ringed at the counter. Joy started to stand, but stopped.

"I can't take care of you forever... I think it's time to check you out. You're all healed, well, at least physically. Follow me."

As they walked, Joy looked back at him with bittersweet eyes. He appreciated her help, but she was right. It was time to set out on his own.

Joy entered into the lobby, only to freeze. He could see her grip on the doorknob tighten. He slipped past to investigate.

There was a gun. A person was aiming a gun straight at Joy's head. Tulum immediately dived off his head, and for good reason. Almost nobody owned guns, everything they could do, Pokemon could do better.

Except kill.

The center was empty. Joy stood, stunned, then lunged for the phone like a streak of lightning.

But sometimes even lightning can be slower than a well placed bullet. There was a small glint, then a large crash. Joy stood in silence.

Then fell to the floor.

He must admit, they were quite the marksman. Straight into the heart. As he stared, he realized.

He didn't feel anything.

Something seemed to come over him, drawing out every emotion before he had the chance to react to it.

No sorrow. No empathy. Nothing. He knew even with thinking this that grief should be pouring into him, breaking him down, as she bled out onto the floor, eyes lifeless as she. But even this brought nothing.

Tulum sat on Joy, head down. Tulum was motionless, other than her ragged breathing.

Outside the large windows, people were fleeing slowly. Some carried children or Pokemon cradled in their arms. Time seemed to speed up again as the person suddenly made a dash for the back room. A fog seemed to come over Jack's mind, blurring his thoughts. Then, he started to act, almost on instinct.

**"Stop."**

The intruder froze. "Who said that." they demanded.

Jack could barely make out the situation through the mental fog, but he could still feel the movements of his body, acting with no commands from him. **"Me."** His eyes let off a small glow as they turned to face him. He felt the strings of the world all around him, tangling into webs of gleaming light. All he had to do was grab one, and he would be plucking the strings of possibilities. He tugged hard. Their grip tightened on their gun. But all they felt was air.

**"I think it's about time you leave this place."** He aimed the gun up a the intruder, the mist that made up his body streaking out haphazardly. He knew that he couldn't shoot it properly with his arms, but they didn't need to know that. The intruder backed up slowly, then burst through the door, the bell above it whirling off and clattering to the ground.

His body continued to act on its own, and set the gun down. Then... his consciousness slipped away from him, and he slid into the misty depths of his mind. He could tell one last thing, his body did not go to sleep with him.

* * *

_It won't last soon. The body will soon fall asleep, just like that bothersome child's consciousness. Why did he have to make this so complicated... Trust me kiddo, I, Teontall, will set things they way they should be._

For now, he would rest. It seems that using Psychic like that at first level comes with a price. Not that it would matter soon, anyways. His job would soon be done.

And with that he fell to the ground.

* * *

**Oh wow, this took forever to get to doing. Sorry about that, school had made me temporarily hate writing again. Also sorry that it's a short one.**

**I love every review on the story, however, I'm not going to be typing all of them out and responding to them here. If there is a question that I want to answer or something I want to comment on in a review, I'll DM the reviewer!**


	5. Safety, Or is It?

He was suddenly aware of a soft material underneath him. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking a bit as the warm light of the room flooded in.

"Hey, you. You're finally awake." Tulum peered at him from a shelf above, which had stalks of lavender blossoming up from it.

He looked around, a little dazed. He shifted, feeling the soft pillow under him. To the left, a window let in light, and all sorts of flowers and plants grew in a small glass room. He seemed to be on a counter of sorts, a kettle sitting on the stovetop nearby.

"Uh... where am I? And what happened?" He faced back towards Tulum.

"We're at the Pokémon Research Lab. I know, it's far, but I didn't know where else to go to. Do you... really not remember? She tilted her head to the side, shuffling a bit.

"No, I..." Memories started to filter in. Nurse Joy falling to the ground. The tangle of brilliant threads that sewed the world into place... but after that, it was blank. But something about the memories he did have seemed... off. Jack had an unsettling feeling. Whatever happened after the first shot rang in the air...

It wasn't him.

It was terrifying to think about, that something else had seized control, yet something told him he was right.

"You dead or something?" Tulum joked, flapping down from where she perched. He just stared at her for a second. "Ah, sorry. I guess that was a bit inappropriate for the situation."

"It's... It's alright. I'm just going through a bit of stuff right now."

"I can tell." She deadpanned. "I imagine it's pretty strange to mourn for yourself, although I think you should skip the funeral."

That got a bit of a chuckle out of him. It was strange indeed. It did have a bit of hilarity to it. Thinking about it, he didn't really seem to particularly miss the way it was before. He honestly didn't remember a whole ton, but he did know there wasn't a whole lot of happy moments. Plus, he was getting more used to this body by the hour. Here, on this counter, talking with a friend, in the wildest of situations, but with more to and look forward to than ever before... he...

He started to tear up a bit.

_He felt free._

* * *

As they talked, the conversation grew lighter, and he was smiling for the first time in what felt like forever.

The door creaked as it opened, interrupting the quiet atmosphere. A woman walked in, wrinkled with age, but with a lively stature.

"Ah, so the little one's awake. Hold on, let me get my tea." She picked up the kettle and poured two cups, then placing a tea bag in each. She walked over to him, and placed her hand gently on his head. "How are you doing, child? Tulum over there brought you here in quite the state."

He was silent, not sure how to respond. Should he respond truthfully? If he told her that he was feeling terrible, he might be insulting her care... But silence was not an option either. He took a deep breath to calm his mind, and tried to make a connection so he could talk to her. The strand flickered, before he quickly cut it. He was too worn out to use Psychic.

He sighed, leaning back into the pillow.

"Looks like you could use to rest a bit longer, little one. That's alright. Tulum, would you care for some tea?" She motioned towards the two cups of tea that she had now placed on the nearby table. "It can do wonders for the body." She walked over and held her index finger out horizontally.

Tulum hopped into her finger with no hesitation. She climbed up her lab coat, and onto her shoulder, nibbling lightly at the professors ear.

"You'll have to wait a little for it to cool down." She said, as Tulum skittered across the table to the second cup. Tulum sat patiently beside the cup, snuggling up against its warmth. He almost seemed to feel that warmth too as he fell back asleep.

* * *

He was in total darkness.

He opened his eyes, but there was nothing to see.

The whole place rang with a soft music, no individual instruments could be picked out, but it was... relaxing.

_Where am I?_ He thought to himself. The place seemed to hum back, _Nowhere. There is nothing here. No worries, no fears. Rest awhile, would you?_

This place seemed to return his strength gradually, filling him with energy and warmth, like when you drink a cup of hot chocolate. He missed hot chocolate, or just chocolate in general...

...His mind cleared of all thoughts, and he slowly began to drift...

_**BANG!**_

A crash of thunder jolted him up instantly, and the dark was melting away as a bright white filled the void. He squinted his eyes shut, but it made no difference. It seemed to burn through his misty body, sending jolts of pain through him. He had almost forgotten what pain felt like, but it seemed this new place wouldn't let him.

He stifled a scream as it continued, but he began to adjust, although the unrelenting light still seemed to stab at him with every chance. He peeked his eyes open, but immediately regretted it as it seemed to pierce through his very soul. Still he continued to open them through the pain.

Strings of energy, somehow shining brighter than the background they lay against, crisscrossed the space. Then in the distance, he spotted a figure approaching.

It looked a lot like him. The old him. A stumbling little child with eyes downcast. The figure disappeared in a flash that sent a new wave of fiery pain rippling through him. Then he saw himself as he was now. The Phantump came over to him, a refreshing dark color that seemed to cool the flames raging through him. But the way it moved, held itself... was very different from him. He recognized it.

Teontall.

They looked into his eyes, and spoke.

_**"You are more troublesome than I anticipated."**_

It was a deep, booming voice that beat through him, scattering his body for a second, and echoed throughout the eternal light.

_**"However, you cannot last long."**_

The copy seemed to smirk for a second, but then began to change. The disguise ripped away, and out emerged a figure that he couldn't even begin to describe. He caught glimpses through the blinding light that now shone more than impossibly bright. A wing one place. An eye. A blade. A gaping cavity that may have been a mouth. These things and an inconceivable amount more emerged, and it just kept coming. Finally, it stopped. Whatever this was now seemed to surround him, corner him. He saw shapes in its body that seemed to defy all known laws of reality, stretching beyond the third dimension. The strands of light all attached to it. And suddenly came a blade of a thousand ends swinging towards him, it vaporizing every particle in him.

And in a flash it all seemed to be over.

* * *

**Oh woah, a cliffhanger. Spooky.**

**I finally managed to get back to writing this story! I had to fight through writers block, schoolwork piling up, and other ideas that wouldn't leave me alone. But I'm finally here! I honestly forgot about this for a little while, but I found the previous chapter in my notes, and had a sudden smack of inspiration! Writers block seems to be backing off for now, but for how long I don't know.**

**Please feel free to leave a review! Even if it's just "Neat!" Or "I wonder what will happen!" Every single review gives me more drive to continue! I tend to get motivated from other peoples input, haha.**

**If you have any questions, you can DM me!**

**'Till we meet again!**


	6. An Opportunity

Everything felt numb. The barrage of blasts just kept coming, seeming to break away at him. Piece by piece... things seemed to drift away. Where am I? Where is mom... I can't let her see me like this... Wait, who is mom? Why don't I like her? Where was I, where have I been... who is that bird- the- TULUM!

He snapped out of his trance, and with it, the pain returned. His memories! That's what Teontall was trying to take! No. He wouldn't let that happen. He finally felt like he was going somewhere for once. Nothing was going to take this away from him. This must be his mind. If so, he needed to wake up NOW. He straightened out, bracing himself. Then with one final push, he gathered all the energy he could control around himself, and blasted it outwards. He felt his strength blast out with it... but the pain was gone. Opening his heavy eyelids, he saw the place had once again slipped into the comforting darkness. Teontall, once again a Phantump, was reeling back. Teontall spotted him, and growled.

Seeing Jack wasn't scared, he straightened out, and warned, "You won't last long. The world and more will be against you, and it will break you. And when it does, I will be here."

And then Jack's consciousness slipped out of the dark.

* * *

He blinked his eyes open. A familiar scene greeted him. He was on a pillow. He felt just as weary as before. Tulum leaned over him, concerned, but as Jack opened his eyes, she perked up.

Jack sat up, rubbing his head through the stump. "...How long was I out?"

Tulum gave him some space. "About a day. I was getting worried, but you're alright now. At least I got some rest too, it's a long flight from Ballonlea to here." She grabbed onto one of his branches and lifted herself on. "Oh, and the professor left you some tea. She's been keeping it warm." Tulum glanced over at a small cup nearby.

Jack drifted to the cup, slightly wobbly from the added imbalanced weight of Tulum. He peered into the cup, and was about to tilt it when he realized he couldn't really drink. He set it back down and sighed.

Tulum hopped off of him. "Aren't you going to have some? You still look really worn out"

"Well I can't exactly drink it, can I?" Jack leaned against the glass window.

"Oh, doesn't your like... plant parts need stuff?" She tilted her head sideways.

"I... don't know? Maybe?" He approached the cup again, and dipped one of his branches into it.

The effects were almost instant. He drank up the tea quickly, recovering from the dehydration he didn't even know he had. His strength flooded back to him, leaving him feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.

"Wow... that felt good. Uh, thank you. I guess I haven't fully figured myself out yet." He looked at Tulum a little sheepishly.

"No problem. Considering you don't know how to drink, It's a miracle you're alive- well, you- uh..." she stumbled on her words for a second. "Anyways, I should go get the professor." She closed off the conversation quickly, flapping away.

* * *

The professor entered the room, glancing at Jack. "Ah, you're up." She pulled out a chair, and turned it to face him. "I don't think I've properly introduced myself. I'm Magnolia, the professor of this region. You seem to be doing a lot better now, so you won't have to stay much longer."

As the last of the sleepiness left Jack, it suddenly clicked that it was, in fact, the professor in front of him. This was his chance. With refreshed energy, he swiftly made a psychic link.

"Uh, Miss. There is something I would like to ask."

Magnolia looked at him with mild curiosity. "You know Psychic? That's interesting, I assumed you were wild."

Jack chuckled nervously. "Technically, I am. It's a long story though... and I still want to ask something, if you don't mind." He felt rude for bringing it back up again.

"Alright, go ahead. You can share more later."

Jack took a deep breath. "I want to participate in the gym challenge." He said firmly.

Magnolia raised an eyebrow at him, causing Jack to drop the confidence a bit. "Well uh- If that's alright with you, and-"

"Hold on a second." Magnolia interrupted. "Just how could that work? You're a wild Pokémon. You don't have any sort of ID."

Jack perked up upon realizing she didn't immediately shoot down his idea. "Actually, in my bag..." His words trailed off. "Where's my bag? Oh no no please- no not now-" He pushed himself off the counter, looking around for any signs of his stuff.

"You mean this is yours?" She opened a cabinet nearby and pulled out his backpack.

"YES! Yes that's mine."

Magnolia shrugged and set it by him. "I thought it was your trainer's, but seeing as you don't have one, I guess it's yours."

Jack tugged at the zipper a few times before he got it to open. Shifting though it, he pulled out his Pokédex and held it out to Magnolia. She took it, a bit confused, and opened it up in the ID section. After scanning it over, she held it out to him.

"So let me get this straight, that's you?" She pointed to the picture in the corner of the display.

Jack nodded fervently.

Magnolia sat in the chair. "So... you died? In the forest?"

Jack nodded again, a bit less enthusiastically this time.

She leaned back in the chair, rubbing her temples. "So it's true..." she muttered to herself.

"What?" Jack asked a bit nervously. Was someone looking for him? Was he going to be turned over to the-"

"The Pokédex entry." Magnolia stopped his train of thought. "Although the Pokédex entry theorizes that Phantump are the souls of children who died in the forest, it was just that. A theory. Most people just trust whatever the Pokédex says, however as a professor I know that there are many flaws in it. I thought this was one of them. There was no solid evidence for the the theory... until now." She stood up, beginning to pace around the small area. "This could be a massive breakthrough, a Ghost Pokémon that has retained the memories of its past life." She was talking more to herself at this point.

"So again uh- can I participate in the.. Gym challenge..." Jack meekly brought it up once again.

Magnolia focused her attention back on Jack. She looked him over carefully, then stared off, turning over the situation in her head. Finally, she gave her answer.

"No."

* * *

**HI I'M NOT DEAD **

**Wow this is a pretty long chapter.**

**Sorry for not updating in so long ;-;**

**I've just has a lot going on, and wasn't motivated to write most of the time, and when I was I had other things I was writing. From now on, don't really expect quick updates. This will be an occasional thing for whenever I want to write. This doesn't mean that I am abandoning this, I definitely want to see where this story goes! **

**I also tweaked some things in the previous chapters, especially in the Teontall gun scene. I finally decided to plan out a few things beforehand for once, so I needed to have things actually fit what I have planned.**

**Anyways, I figured I'd respond to some reviews! If you have any questions, ask away. If you have anything that you'd like to see, I'd greatly appreciate if you told me! I might end up including it :)**

**Thorns97 (ch4)**

**(Sweet chapter! I'm not sure whether to be excited or what. The sudden chsnge in mindset was a little jarring, but regardless, I'll look forward to the next chapter!)**

**Thanks! You're right, it didn't come off the way I wanted to, so that's why I changed the scene. I hope the new one works better!**

**secret-werewolves (ch5)**

**(:O Le gasp**

**And I must admit, I'm a bit confused about Teontall. I assume he's the name and personification of the protagonist's new identity?**

**Either way, I can't wait for more :D)**

**Once again, thanks! Response is really what motivates me to keep writing. As for the rest, I'll give you a hint. Teontall is a completely separate entity from Jack.**

**And that's all for now! If you don't like me disappearing for long periods of time and want updates, maybe you could join the Discord! That's where I'm most active so I'll just post occasional updates there and hang out so y'all know I'm alive. (kACbGSJ)**


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